Is your personal trainer lying to you?

Personal trainers know what they're talking about, right? Well, not always.

For most people, having a personal trainer is the dream. That's why celebrities manage to look so good all the time, right? Well actually, maybe not. Apparently there are a few tips the experts love to dish out that might not be that on point. Want to know more? Well, here we go.

SQUATS

Whether you love them or loathe them, these are the key to getting a rounded butt and lean thighs. But there's a right way to do them, which includes not going past a 90 degree angle. Well, that's what they tell you anyway. This is supposed to protect your knees, but according to Chris Fox of CrossFit South Brooklyn it might do the opposite. He tells shape.com that 90 degrees is the moment when there is the most force on the knee joint, which could lead to problems. Instead he recommends going down lower, because that gets the hamstrings involved, which stabilises you and also makes your stronger.

CRUNCHES

Hands up: who's spent hours crunching in the hope of developing a six pack? Well according to Chris, you've been wasting your time. No amount of exercise is going to make your muscles shine through if you're eating badly, because there will be a layer of fat covering them. So the good news is you might actually already have perfect abs under there! But you'll need to reconsider what you shove into your mouth if you want to show them off.

CARDIO

Sorry, we're not saying there's no need to get sweaty at the gym. But if you're looking to drop the pounds, simply pounding the treadmill isn't going to be enough. Chris suggests diet, once again, is vital if you want to see a change in your body. Apart from anything, some types of cardio can cause the hormone that controls your metabolism to reduce, meaning fat is piled on quickly. So it's important to eat a balanced diet too - training isn't going to cut it if you're purging on sugar every night.

PAIN

No pain, no gain... right? Wrong. While it's obviously good to push yourself, you have to know your limits too. Lifting super heavy weights could cause muscle strain and you'll feel light-headed if you do hardcore cardio when you're not used to it. An injury will set your gym routine back weeks too, so we recommend trying hard but listening to your body too.

RUNNING

Many think that pounding the treadmill at the gym is safer than hitting the pavement. It's long been claimed it's easier on the knees, but that's not true. Todd Schlifstein, DO, a clinical instructor at New York University Medical Center's Rusk Institute tells webmd.com that it's the force of your body weight that might cause stress on your joints. Obviously that doesn't change, no matter where you're working out. Get the best out of your exercise by varying it, rather than sticking to running each time.

YOGA

This type of exercise continues to have a moment, and for many it is the perfect low-impact way to workout. But it's not true that all back pain can be cured with it. Certainly it's great for tense muscles and can help strengthen your core, but Todd explains if you have something more serious - such as a disc problem - you might actually do more harm than good. Best to check with your doctor if you have any concerns.

http://www.tv3.ie/entertainment_article.php?locID=1.803.1098&article=156278

Wine and Exercise: A Promising Combination

The European Society of Cardiology is currently convened in Barcelona for its annual congress, where an abundance of promising heart-disease research has been unveiled. Envious American eyes are on a study of regular wine consumption and its apparent health benefits.

Many studies in the past have found that wine drinkers have healthier hearts than abstainers, but the current trial—called In Vino Veritas (In Wine, Truth)—is one of the first studies to actually introduce wine into people’s lives and track its effects on their bodies.

Lead researcher Miloš Táborský, head of cardiology at the Palacký University Hospital in Olomouc in the Czech Republic, revealed the study's results in a presentation over the weekend, saying, “We found that moderate wine drinking was only protective in people who exercised. Red and white wine produced the same results.”

For one year, subjects drank “moderate” amounts of wine five days per week. For men, that meant 0.3 to 0.4 liters daily, about two to two-and-a-half glasses. For women it meant 0.2 to 0.3 liters, about one to two glasses. (A more common definition is one glass for women and two glasses for men.) Half of the 146 subjects drank pinot noir, and half drank a white “chardonnay-pinot.” The participants logged any and all alcohol consumption in journals, where they also kept track of their diets and physical activity.


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By itself, drinking wine did not appreciably affect cholesterol, blood glucose, triglycerides, or levels of inflammatory markers like C-reactive protein. It also did not appreciably damage people’s livers during the year, at least, based on liver-function tests.

But then Táborský and company ran a more specific analysis that looked at people who exercised. Among those who worked out twice per week and drank wine, there was significant improvement in cholesterol levels (increased HDL and decreased LDL) after a year of wine—red or white, no matter.

"Our current study shows that the combination of moderate wine drinking plus regular exercise improves markers of atherosclerosis," said Táborský, "suggesting that this combination is protective against cardiovascular disease."

Continue Here: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/09/working-with-the-wine-not-against-it/379504/

Low Carb Diet Comes Back Around Yet Again

A new study has caused the infamous low carb diet to come back around in the press yet again despite mountains of scientific evidence that in the long term, calories in vs. calories out–not carbs or fat–is what matter most in weight loss. The study was recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine and it included 148 men and women. Half of the participants ate a low-fat diet while the other half ate a low carb diet, cutting out breads, pastas, potatoes, high sugar fruits, baked goods and other carb-laden foods.

At the end of the study, the low carb group lost eight pounds more than the low fat group, leading press headlines to once again shout the benefits of a low carb diet from the rooftops. Low carb dieting began as far back as the 1800s, but it became incredibly popular in the 1970s, when Dr. Atkins was at the height of his career. His eating plan became so entrenched in the American mindset that it became known as “the Atkins Diet,” or as some people enjoyed calling it, “the Atkins.”

Atkins’ philosophy was that by cutting out carbs, a person’s body would be pushed into what is called ketosis. That is when the body is forced to burn fat as fuel, but it is also a condition suffered by diabetic people as well as those with kidney disorders. Few doctors think that ketosis is a healthy state in which to be, and it is hard on the kidneys and other organs. The Atkins diet starts people out on a phase called “induction” in which they eat almost no carbs, then moves them into the weight loss phase, where they can eat limited carbs in the form of vegetables. Maintenance allows some fruit and alcohol as well.

It is true that people lose weight on the Atkins diet or most any low-carb eating plan, but some experts say that the weight loss is due mostly to the drastic calorie reduction that occurs when carb-rich foods are cut from a person’s daily intake. Indeed, as USA Today reports, larger studies have shown no significant difference in weight loss between low fat and low carb diets.

Perhaps the most research has been done on the effect of calorie restriction as it pertains to weight loss. What the body of research over time shows is that calories are the main factor in determining weight loss. When someone burns more calories than they ingest, they will lose weight barring any underlying medical condition. This has been proven again and again in numerous meta-analyses over at least 50 years.

Nearly all diets rely on one basic factor for success: calorie restriction. Whether that restriction occurs due to cutting out food groups, counting points, measuring portions, eliminating sweets, adding exercise or replacing meals with shakes and bars, all the diets have one thing in common and that is a net reduction of calories.

Low carb diets have come back around yet again, but like the current gluten-free hysteria, low carb is a trend; a fad that keeps waxing and waning over time. To lose weight for the majority of healthy people, calories must be reduced somehow, and no amount of marketing for any specific diet will change this proven fact.

http://www.viralglobalnews.com/health/low-carb-diet-comes-back-around-yet-again/16086/

Health Tip: Eating for Energy

(Health Day News) -- Food is fuel for your body, and filling up on nutritious offerings can really rev up your energy.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics offers these suggestions to help give you some pep:

• Eat small meals and snacks regularly to maintain metabolism and prevent hunger.
• Stick to small portions and light meals that are just enough to satisfy your hunger and cravings.
• Balance your plate with healthy servings of fruits and veggies, low- or non-fat dairy, whole grains, lean proteins and healthy fats.
• Choose foods that offer plenty of fiber and protein.
• Avoid drinks that can rob you of energy, such as sugary sodas, coffees and energy drinks. Instead, drink plenty of water, unsweetened tea, low-fat or fat-free milk or flavored water.

Continue here: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2014/07/03/health-tip-eating-for-energy